


Those Three Words

by orphan_account



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: First Time Fest, Fluff, M/M, Rating: PG13
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-08-08
Updated: 2011-08-08
Packaged: 2017-10-22 09:42:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/236684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompt: The first time Arthur and Merlin say I love you to each other.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Those Three Words

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [The Merlin First Time Fest](http://eloquent-toast.livejournal.com/236549.html)!

Arthur wouldn’t ever forget the first time Merlin whispered those three words between the dark, heavy blankets. They were sprawled side by side on his bed -- naked, of course -- with their fingers looped loosely together. Merlin was panting far more than Arthur, because  _Arthur_  was in peak physical condition, so a quick roll in the hay was nowhere near enough to reduce him to a breathless mess.

He lifted his arm, pushing up the itchy red fabric so he could get a proper look at Merlin’s face. He lay there, staring back at Arthur with big blue eyes, his cheeks and lips a brilliant pink and his dark hair matted in the sweat on his forehead.

They’d done this before -- they’d kissed a lot, and held each other close. Their curious fingers had explored each other many times, and their chests had collided in a rush of groans and gasping more than once. Sometimes, afterwards, they’d lie together on Arthur’s bed. Other times, they’d slump in a heap at the foot of his cupboard, or even sit cross-legged on the rug in front of the fireplace, facing each other.

The level of awkward conversation and uneasy glances depended wholly on how quickly Arthur could fall back into character, which was why he was usually the one in control. If Merlin was allowed to reduce Arthur to a whimpering heap of sweaty satisfaction, then he’d have to sit and watch Arthur recompose himself, by which point any show of princely authority lost its potency. It was always best to make  _Merlin_  forget his duties and his useless comments and (just that one time) his own name.

So when those three words echoed through Arthur’s head, quiet and content and unmistakably  _real_ , he couldn’t quite believe it. Merlin was the only person there. Merlin was the only person with anything close to a reason to feel that way, but Arthur wasn’t convinced. After sex like that, Merlin was usually incoherent for a good twenty minutes, only coming back to life when Arthur drove a finger between his bony shoulder blades and reminding him that they had to move at some point, and there really was no time like the present.

For that reason, Arthur felt he could be forgiven his confusion. He had the right to frown at Merlin under the deep red blankets and grunt, “What?”

It hadn’t seem possible Merlin could get any pinker, but he managed it. His cheeks flushed and he scrunched up his eyes, burying his face in his hands. Arthur ran his fingers gently along the lean muscle of Merlin’s arm, trying to stop him from rolling over and facing the other way, but it didn’t work. Merlin squirmed away, looking thoroughly embarrassed. 

Arthur was left staring at Merlin’s knobbly spine. Not the worst view in the world, he had to admit, especially since the faint red marks where his fingers had dug into Merlin’s hips were still visible against the pale skin. Arthur let his eyes linger on the smooth lines of Merlin’s body, nipping inadvertently at his bottom lip, before he scooted forwards.

“Merlin,” he whispered softly into a particularly large ear. “I didn’t mean for it to sound like that. Just tell me what you said?”

Arthur had always been proud of his ability to sound irritated, even when his voice was laced with compassion. It was a rare gift, and always came in useful during conversations that could otherwise become very  _emotional_. Arthur chose to adopt this skill at that precise moment, and he combined it with snaking an arm around Merlin’s waist and pressing his chest up against the cool, bare skin of Merlin’s back. He was confident in his approach -- Merlin really had no hope of resisting.

“I said I love you,” Merlin murmured into the soft touch of Arthur’s lips behind his ear. Arthur couldn’t see Merlin’s face, but he could tell from his distant tone that his eyelids were fluttering closed, and his lips were ever so slightly parted. It made Arthur want to press more kisses against Merlin’s neck, but his need to look Merlin in the eye was stronger.

“Really?” he couldn’t keep the surprise out of his voice. Arthur pulled back from where he was holding Merlin, allowing room for Merlin to shift onto his back and meet his gaze across the pillows.

A smile and a nod so small it was almost imperceptible was all the reply Arthur got, but it was enough. It felt like he’d left his stomach on the training grounds. He tried to grin, but he just managed to puff out a breath of air and make the hole where his stomach should’ve been twist anxiously.

Arthur knew his hands were shaking, but he chose to ignore it as he brought one of them up to run through his fringe. He could feel his blonde hair sticking up at odd angles, and if the silence hadn’t been so unbearably heavy, Merlin probably would’ve laughed and reached out to fuss over it until everything was lying  _just_  how he liked it. As it was, he barely seemed able to hold Arthur’s gaze.

There was another moment of silence, and then another. The world was holding its breath. Despite what Merlin was probably thinking, Arthur wasn’t  _hesitating_. Sure, it looked and sounded and  _felt_  just like that, but he couldn’t be. This was  _Merlin_.

No, he was just  _considering_. He was having some magical, intoxicating, totally unexpected epiphany. It was oddly similar to all those times he’d been smacked around the head by large, heavy objects, except all that horrible pain and stiff aching was replaced by warm tingles and giddiness.

Lesser men had ‘I have been such an  _idiot_ ’ moments, but Arthur Pendragon stuck with good, old-fashioned ‘ _you_ are always such an idiot’ moments. Anything else was below him -- or so he’d have people believe.

“I love you too.”

Arthur said it with a whimsical smile and a rough snuggle, and he knew it was a ‘first’ Merlin wouldn’t forget, either.


End file.
